# Eccentric Orbits by John Bloom

8 Hacker News commenters recommended Eccentric Orbits by John Bloom and 0 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 3 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Recommended as a fascinating, entertaining account of how Iridium's satellite network was built, though one reader notes it is business-heavy.

## Why people recommend it

- Entertaining, informative story of Iridium (3 comments): "The story of how Iridium came to be and how difficult it was to keep Motorola from literally destroying the whole constellation is quite fascinating." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48725525)) "This kind of trivia can be discovered in the very interesting and entertaining book" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50275200)) "Hugely informative and entertaining book!" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48729684))
- Among the best books recently read (2 comments): "Easily one of the best books I've read in the last few years." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50277494)) "One of the best books I have read in recent years" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48725168))
- Strongly recommended to readers (4 comments): "If you haven't read Eccentric Orbits: The Iridium Story you should." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47777634)) "Easily one of the best books I've read in the last few years." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50277494)) "One of the best books I have read in recent years" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48725168))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [The Man Who Solved the Market by Gregory Zuckerman](https://hackerapproved.com/p/man-who-solved-the-market.md): 7 recommend
- [Barbarians at the Gate by Bryan Burrough and John Helyar](https://hackerapproved.com/p/barbarians-at-the-gate.md): 3 recommend
- [More Money Than God by Sebastian Mallaby](https://hackerapproved.com/p/more-money-than-god.md): 2 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/1611855284?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9781611855289) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Eccentric Orbits by John Bloom", https://hackerapproved.com/p/eccentric-orbits-the-iridium-story/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).